The al-Khisas raid, also known as the al-Khisas massacre, was an attack on the Palestinian village of al-Khisas carried out by the Palmach on December 18, 1947, during the 1948 Palestine war. 10-15 Palestinian villagers were killed in the attack, including 5 children.
Background
The attack took place during the civil war phase of the 1948 Palestine war and was conducted as a reprisal for the killing of a Jewish man near Al-Khisas. Local Palmach commanders decided to launch a retaliatory attack on the village, arguing that "if there was no reaction to the murder, the Arabs would interpret this as a sign of weakness and an invitation to further attacks". The Haganah High Command approved the action on condition that the attack be directed against "men only and they should burn [only] a few houses".</blockquote>
10-15 Palestinian villagers were killed in the attack, 5 of them children.
Aftermath and reactions
Following the attack a large number of al-Khisas' residents fled their homes, becoming a part of the 1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight.
The events led to an escalation in violence that rapidly spread through the Upper Galilee region;
The Jewish leadership at the time sharply criticized the attack.
On the night of 5 June 1949, the remaining inhabitants of Khisas were forcibly expelled as part of the 1949–1956 Palestinian expulsions. Some time after the village was destroyed.